The Peculiar A Novel Stefan Bachmann Greenwillow Books: 384 pp., $16.99, ages 9 and up The average 16-year-old who writes usually does so for school, bringing the same level of rigor and enthusiasm to the endeavor as he would to cleaning a public toilet. Not Stefan Bachmann, a teenager who makes his authorial debut with a middle-grade novel so polished and fun to read that one would never suspect he was in high school when he began to write it. "The Peculiar" is the title of Bachmann's steampunk fairy tale set in an alternate Victorian-era London - a book that, at times, recalls Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment," Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities" and more recent classics, such as J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" and Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Doodle 4 Google, the contest for kids that puts one young artist's work on the Google homepage for a day, kicked off on Tuesday. It's the seventh year for the doodle contest for artists in kindergarten through 12th grade. Grand prize is a $30,000 college scholarship and $50,000 to the winner's school to create a technology lab. And for this year's contest there's a new twist. The Google Doodles, if you're not familiar, are those works that incorporate the Google logo and pop up frequently at Google.com.

"The Lightning Thief" Rick Riordan Perseus (Percy) Jackson finds out he's a half-blood, which means he's half-human and half-god. His mother sends him to a camp named Camp Half-Blood. There he trains as a warrior. Percy's father is a god too. At camp, his father (Poseidon, the Sea God) claims Percy as his son. Little does Percy know that soon he will go on a heart-bending quest to find Zeus' master lightning bolt.

"Bunnicula: A Rabbit Tale of Mystery" Deborah and James Howe This tale gets you hoppin' once you start to read. Harold, a dog, and his pal Chester the cat get a new family member: a bunny with mysterious habits and fangs who mysteriously gets out of his cage at night! Will Chester and Harold get to the bottom of his mysterious habits in time? Find out more about this creepy tale!

Mayor Richard Riordan and a Clinton Administration representative announced Monday the release of $2.8 million in federal grants for local volunteer organizations to provide services and assistance to victims of the Northridge quake. The grants will be distributed to 13 volunteer organizations to provide quake cleanup in low-income neighborhoods and parks, tutoring for students whose schools were closed and day-care services, among other programs.

Fiction Weeks on list 1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Putnam: $24.95) The lives of a maid, a cook and a college graduate become intertwined as they change a Mississippi town. 37 2. First Rule by Robert Crais (Putnam: $26.95) Joe Pike's past catches up with him when an old friend's entire family is killed. 5 3. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson (Knopf: $25.95) A hacker implicated in two murders must revisit her past to prove her innocence.